Special Offers and Product Promotions

Get free shipping on this item when you purchase 1 or more Qualifying Items offered by Amazon Digital Services, Inc.. Here's how (restrictions apply)

Book Description

CHAMPAGNE FOR TWO is a tale about an upscale dating service in Palm Beach--fun and sassy!

ExcerptHe shoved a magazine in her face, pointing to an ad for Merry Matchmakers that featured a picture of him. “You used my photo without my consent.”“I did no such thing.” The glossy picture showed him wearing pretty much the same thing as he had on right now, except the body hugging shirt was clean. He was grinning at something or someone, and he looked so at ease in his own skin, and so natural, that she wouldn’t have thought it was a commercial photograph. “But it is a nice picture.”Christine smiled and decided to tease him a little, just for the hell of it. “You look so manly.” Her mother’s friends must have been responsible. Maybe this was their idea of helping her out after selling her a nearly bankrupt business, but boy, did they have it wrong. This man was not at all what she had in mind for an ad campaign for Champagne for Two.“If you’re the owner, you must have known about the ad.” He was standing close enough that she could smell his body odor, and it should have been appalling but for some reason wasn’t. “Do you need some help, Christine?” Jamie asked, stepping toward the two of them.“No, but thanks.”Jamie shrugged and grabbed a chair to watch the little drama going on. The other three women were all guzzling their champagne and ogling the guy.“So, who are you exactly?” Christine inquired. “And how did they get your picture to use for advertisements without your approval?”“Dammed if I know.” He rubbed a hand over his unshaven face. “Look, maybe we got off to a bad start here. I’m Derek Connors, Mary’s nephew. I guess it wasn’t too hard for her to get a picture of me.” He grimaced. “But why the hell did she use it for some damn fool ad?”Now that Derek wasn’t shouting, Christine studied his face. He was very handsome, if you liked the scruffy, haven’t shaved today, dirty Harry type of guy. She didn’t, of course. At the sensible age of forty-five, she preferred gentlemen with collared shirts on their chests.But still, her heart raced as she studied him.She walked behind the reception desk to put a little space between the two of them. She didn’t want a racing heart to get in the way of her good judgment. She picked up a pen, tapping it against the palm of her hand. “I’m very sorry your aunt and my mother did this without your permission. I’ll speak to them about it the moment I get the chance. You see, they left today for Europe.”He followed her around the desk and stood so close, his nose was only inches from hers. “Pull all future ads.”“I can’t. I don’t know where they’ve been circulated, but I will be sure to find out all that I can. As a matter of fact, I’ll put that down as my number one concern. If you would like to leave me your name and number, I’ll call you once I have more information. That’s the best I can do.”He took a step back, and she relaxed.“I’m sorry for losing my temper, but this ad has made me a damn laughing stock. Everybody on the construction site thinks I had to resort to a dating service to get a date.” He puffed out his sizeable chest. “I’m not that hard up. I could find a woman if I wanted one. I don’t.” His flush deepened. “And I don’t want my face plastered all over town, like some prissy poster boy.”“Why not? Most men would love it. Think of all the dates you’ll get.” She smiled, thinking fast. Perhaps he was exactly what she needed to generate business. She needed young flesh and here he was. Late thirties, possibly forty. Put him in a business suit and he would look very presentable. Sexy, even.“You think this is funny?” He leaned in close again, and the smile slid off her face. “I don’t want to sue Aunt Mary, but I will if I have to. Let’s end this right now. Get on the phone and pull the ads.” He shifted his feet, moving a fraction in her direction, crowding her space. Still, she didn’t budge. “Could you take care of this while I wait?” he said. “Like now?”

CHAMPAGNE FOR TWO is a tale about an upscale dating service in Palm Beach--fun and sassy!

ExcerptHe shoved a magazine in her face, pointing to an ad for Merry Matchmakers that featured a picture of him. “You used my photo without my consent.”“I did no such thing.” The glossy picture showed him wearing pretty much the same thing as he had on right now, except the body hugging shirt was clean. He was grinning at something or someone, and he looked so at ease in his own skin, and so natural, that she wouldn’t have thought it was a commercial photograph. “But it is a nice picture.”Christine smiled and decided to tease him a little, just for the hell of it. “You look so manly.” Her mother’s friends must have been responsible. Maybe this was their idea of helping her out after selling her a nearly bankrupt business, but boy, did they have it wrong. This man was not at all what she had in mind for an ad campaign for Champagne for Two.“If you’re the owner, you must have known about the ad.” He was standing close enough that she could smell his body odor, and it should have been appalling but for some reason wasn’t. “Do you need some help, Christine?” Jamie asked, stepping toward the two of them.“No, but thanks.”Jamie shrugged and grabbed a chair to watch the little drama going on. The other three women were all guzzling their champagne and ogling the guy.“So, who are you exactly?” Christine inquired. “And how did they get your picture to use for advertisements without your approval?”“Dammed if I know.” He rubbed a hand over his unshaven face. “Look, maybe we got off to a bad start here. I’m Derek Connors, Mary’s nephew. I guess it wasn’t too hard for her to get a picture of me.” He grimaced. “But why the hell did she use it for some damn fool ad?”Now that Derek wasn’t shouting, Christine studied his face. He was very handsome, if you liked the scruffy, haven’t shaved today, dirty Harry type of guy. She didn’t, of course. At the sensible age of forty-five, she preferred gentlemen with collared shirts on their chests.But still, her heart raced as she studied him.She walked behind the reception desk to put a little space between the two of them. She didn’t want a racing heart to get in the way of her good judgment. She picked up a pen, tapping it against the palm of her hand. “I’m very sorry your aunt and my mother did this without your permission. I’ll speak to them about it the moment I get the chance. You see, they left today for Europe.”He followed her around the desk and stood so close, his nose was only inches from hers. “Pull all future ads.”“I can’t. I don’t know where they’ve been circulated, but I will be sure to find out all that I can. As a matter of fact, I’ll put that down as my number one concern. If you would like to leave me your name and number, I’ll call you once I have more information. That’s the best I can do.”He took a step back, and she relaxed.“I’m sorry for losing my temper, but this ad has made me a damn laughing stock. Everybody on the construction site thinks I had to resort to a dating service to get a date.” He puffed out his sizeable chest. “I’m not that hard up. I could find a woman if I wanted one. I don’t.” His flush deepened. “And I don’t want my face plastered all over town, like some prissy poster boy.”“Why not? Most men would love it. Think of all the dates you’ll get.” She smiled, thinking fast. Perhaps he was exactly what she needed to generate business. She needed young flesh and here he was. Late thirties, possibly forty. Put him in a business suit and he would look very presentable. Sexy, even.“You think this is funny?” He leaned in close again, and the smile slid off her face. “I don’t want to sue Aunt Mary, but I will if I have to. Let’s end this right now. Get on the phone and pull the ads.” He shifted his feet, moving a fraction in her direction, crowding her space. Still, she didn’t budge. “Could you take care of this while I wait?” he said. “Like now?”

A story about a dating service is nothing new, but Patrice Wilton puts a new spin on this delightful, fun story. She has included a great cast of characters, a fun-loving grandmother, a troubled daughter, an eccentric psychologist, and a very hot construction worker who give the heroine plenty to worry about. I was entertained all they way through.

I wanted to like this book and I enjoyed parts of it. However, I found the female lead character so incredibly unlikable that I didn't care whether she ended up happy or not. She was overly abrasive and often just plain mean to the male lead. All the witchiness just really kept me from rooting for her. I also thought the two extra storylines with the grandmother and daughter really bogged things down. I skipped over most of the grandmother drama and ended up just skimming the 2nd half of the book.

Patrice Wilton takes you away with her wonderful sense of humor. I had a horrible time when I read this book. I burned dinner, missed an appointment, and ignored my life totally. Because I couldn't put it down.This is a keeper, thank God I finished it, my DH was ready to leave home! I never liked Contemporary until I read Patrice.

It's been a while since I've read a book in which I find myself so intensely disliking the main character. What an absolute jerk Christine is. Yes, I understand that her ex-husband damaged her emotionally, but honest to goodness, the way she treated Derek was appalling. Sleep with me. Don't talk to me. Sleep with me. Get out of my life. Kiss me. Go away. But don't go with anyone else, either.

I wanted to reach into the book and choke her. I was almost bummed out every time Derek gave her another chance. What kind of love story is that? All she did was play head games and feel sorry for herself.

There was a secondary storyline that dealt with Christine's mother. That wasn't very interesting, and she seemed to jump around quite a bit from ok to heartbroken to ok again pretty quickly. But at least I didn't want to punch her...mostly because she wasn't interesting enough to cause me to make a fist.

The only interesting person was the therapist, even though her character was not deeply developed, since she provided some comic relief.

Could've been a good story, but it wasn't. Nobody wants to read a book in which they want the couple to stay apart.

When I decide if I want to give a book a try, I start with the negative reviews. I find they give me more infomation than the glowing 4 and 5 star reviews. I mention this to say that I didn't agree with the reviewer who felt the main character was wishy washy, pushing our hero away and then pulling him back. While I never possessed this level of fear after my own divorce, I can understand how someone would feel that way. Beyond that, I had my own "issues" with this book.

On the plus side, this is a fast read. There aren't a lot of typos or misused words, which is also a plus and tends to result in my refusing to finish a book.

On the negative, I found the book unbelievable beyond belief and that just ruined it for me. A woman who owns a successful hair salon sells it to take over her mother's failing business and then spends money like she grows it on a tree in her yard. Really?

I have a personal problem with what I call "delusional fantasy" in books. I don't care about name dropping, designer brand dropping, and someone pretending to be on the inside of the elite. This woman was a hairdresser. She's a provider of services. That doesn't suddenly put her on the inside track for a high class dating serving. And no one, I don't care how much money they have is going to drop $1,000 for a dating service that has no track record.

On another note, I was so curious about the "exclusive condo complex" on Manalapan, that I took a ride looking for it. I certainly don't remember there being one there. There isn't. There are condos in Lake Worth and Boynton Beach. The only thing on Manalapan are really, really big single family mansions. There's that "delusional fantasy" again.

If you've read any of Patrice Wilton's perky women's fiction-romance,you'll think this one belongs in the same line-up. I always enjoy theconflict she engenders in her characters--and how she somehow gets themost unlikely people to fall in love! Sooo---try "Champagne for Two"--you'll like it!

Derek, 40 year old hunk. Christine, 45 year old beautiful woman. Except Christine has a major problem, especially when Derek, a five year younger man, wants her. Having been burned badly by her ex-husband, Christine doesn't want love again. But, can she hold out against a man like Derek? Read the book and find out. I thoroughly enjoyed this one and was sad when it ended. Thoroughly recommended by me.

More About the Author

Patrice Wilton was born in Vancouver, Canada, and knew from the age of twelve that she wanted to be a writer. She became a flight attendent for 17 years, then moved to Australia, and England, before settling in West Palm Beach, Florida. She is a USA Today best selling author of more than twenty books, including her successful romantic comedy, "Candy Bar series", and Serendipity Falls series, and returning war heroes, published by Amazon Montlake.When she's not writing, you might find her on the tennis court, or hitting golf balls with her PGA pro husband.